February 25, 2014

Alison Rold is Assistant Production Manager in EDP and she is a fearless bread baker.

Many years ago, before the birth of the Internet, a friend of mine told me that he was delivering a lot of king cakes from New Orleans. I had no idea what a king cake was, but I was intrigued, thinking maybe it was some elaborate sheet cake. I went to the library and found a book with a picture of one. Then I hunted down a king cake recipe in another book. It didn’t look like a cake at all. It looked like a crown, and was a big circle of iced sweet brioche dough, colored with purple, green, and yellow sugars. I’ve always liked baking, so I decided to make one and bring it to work as a surprise.

The evening before Fat Tuesday I made and shaped the dough, baked it, frosted it, and, following the recipe instructions, dribbled a lot of different food colorings straight from the little bottles onto the white icing. I thought about it before I did it because it seemed like a rather intense use of liquid food coloring, but I wasn’t sure what else to do. When I was finished, it looked a bit like a coral-colored snake. I wish I had taken a picture of it. I stuck a coffee bean in the bottom of the circle of sweet yeast bread, brought it into work, set it by the coffee urn, and announced that it was a king cake to celebrate Mardi Gras. I cautioned everyone to watch for the coffee bean so no one would choke. I said that it would be considered an honor to find the bean, and finding it would make you king for the day, though tradition also dictates that the finder would have to host the next Mardi Gras party. Because there was only one cake, it disappeared in less than an hour.

The next year I baked another king cake and did a better job of it, with proper Mardi Gras–colored sugars. People started asking me how to make one. They thought that they might try baking their own the following year. By then I had different recipes and some tiny plastic babies to make it more traditional. Over the years more and more people took a chance and brought in their own versions. We found beads and masks and better king cake collectable dolls from New Orleans, and every year the table looked more festive. Here at the Press, Fat Tuesday has become as anticipated as the other traditional holidays.

Mardi Gras will be here soon. Now there are hundreds of king cake recipes and photos available on the Internet. And even though there have been many changes at the Press since that first king cake, with staff coming in and going out, a number of us still bring king cakes to celebrate Mardi Gras day. It’s one way to add color and flash to the deadliest part of the winter in our part of the country. I think we may need it as much as those who started the festival.

February 21, 2014

Ravi K. Perry(PhD, Brown University, 2009) is an assistant professor of political science and Stennis Scholar for Municipal Governance at Mississippi State University. He is the editor of 21st Century Urban Race Politics: Representing Minorities as Universal Interests (Emerald Group, forthcoming).

Building Community in February: America’s History Month

We are a diverse nation. But are we a diverse community? How we think of, participate in, and care about Black History Month helps us to answer that question.

To build community is to help to make real the promises of democracy enshrined in our nation’s founding documents.

What began as Negro History Week is now known as Black History Month. The transition from “Negro” to “Black” and week to month is testament alone to so-called progress. But has every community of Americans equally been given the opportunity to move on the upward way?

Let us take the month of February as an example. It is called Black History Month. But February is not just for black people. Every year, just two weeks after the celebration of the birth, life, and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the nation is said to commit to celebrate Black History Month. But few people actually do.

In many sectors of American society and neighborhood enclaves, Black History Month has become as trite as Kwanzaa. Many African Americans, let alone other groups, do not celebrate Kwanzaa. But the lack of appropriate and consistent recognition of blacks’ contributions to American life, politics, and culture is not the fault of African Americans, Caucasian Americans, or any other group. It’s indicative of a failure of recognition and an attempt at revisionist history by all of us.

Black history is American history. American history is black history. The month of February is not merely an opportunity for black Americans to remember the heroes and sheroes of eras past. The month of February is an opportunity for every American to engage in the amazing and powerful episodes of our past that have helped us become the nation we are today.

And Black History Month is an ideal time for us to come together as one nation—united we stand—to honor the lives of all Americans and particularly black Americans.

A coming together is nothing new. Blacks have long appealed to whites to join with them in the fight for equality and equity. People of different faiths, different backgrounds, and different skin colors working together for what is right have always championed the cause of social justice on behalf of blacks and all people. In Black Mayors, White Majorities I add to that longstanding tradition in American politics and history that demonstrates the power of community when people of difference come together. I invite you to join me in this effort by making an impact in your community by organizing and/or attending events honoring the lives of African Americans this February. And, of course, you can also purchase my book.

It's time to stop merely celebrating black history and herstory. It's time to honor black history and herstory in the present with our actions. Let's commit to creating actions that produce substantive benefits for blacks and all people. Black history and herstory is global history. We all have a moral obligation to see to it that the spirit of black heroes and sheroes (and allies) from eras past are vindicated by the improvements to the quality of life we work to secure for all human beings today, tomorrow, and forever.

"Now, almost 50 years since fading from the cultural consciousness, McGill recounts his fame-to-rags-to-(spoiler alert)-eventual-middle-class-life in Billy “The Hill” and the Jump Hook: The Autobiography of a Forgotten Basketball Legend. It’s a fascinating story."-Geoff Griffin

"More innovatively, she also raises questions, encouraging readers to image what took place or how Hannah Freeman might have felt as the conditions of her life shifted. In the process, Marsh is able to make Hannah come alive for readers."-Marilyn Dell Brady

Read an excerpt from the book._______________________________________________________________________________

"Kaplan contends that as it stands now, it is essentially up to Reform Jews to decide these issues for themselves. That, he said, makes for a movement that is potentially in danger of implosion. He points to the bitter divisions that have developed within several liberal Christian denominations as a warning for what could happen to Reform Judaism."-Bryan Schwartzman

February 19, 2014

Jeremy Evans is the author ofIn Search of Powder, a book on ski and snowboard culture. He lives in South Lake Tahoe, California.

While the first headlines for the 2014 Winter Olympics were focused on security issues—and rightfully so—less has been made about the 12 events making their debut in Sochi, Russia. That’s unfortunate since U.S. athletes are serious gold-medal contenders in the events Olympics organizers added to help capture a younger demographic: ski halfpipe, ski slopestyle, and snowboard slopestyle.

In ski halfpipe, David Wise and Maddie Bowman are gold medal favorites in the men’s and women’s competitions, respectively. Wise, of Reno, Nevada, is a three-time defending Winter X Games champion, while Maddie Bowman is a two-time defending X Games champion. The annual event held in Aspen, Colorado, is considered the sport’s premier event—unless it’s an Olympic year.

“It’s definitely a bigger stage but people don’t know what to think about us yet,” said 20-year-old Bowman, who lives in the Lake Tahoe area. “With the Olympics, you never know how they are going to portray our sport. We’re kind of the new kids, but it’s exciting. I can only speak from my past experience but the only time I think I’m going to barf is when I am about to drop in at X Games. I kind of feel that way already, so I can feel a difference.”

The belief is ski halfpipe and snowboard/ski slopestyle will attract a new demographic similar to the one started when snowboarding was added in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

That year, snowboard halfpipe and snowboard giant slalom became Olympic events, although the sport suffered from an inauspicious start. Some snowboarders didn’t participate; others didn’t wear team uniforms at meals in an act of rebellion, and Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliaiti was stripped of his gold medal in giant slalom for testing positive for marijuana. Rebagliati appealed the decision and eventually was awarded his medal. Since then, snowboarding has become a main Olympic attraction.

In 2010, the men’s snowboard halfpipe event drew more than 30 million U.S. viewers. It helped the sport’s biggest star, Shaun White, was participating. White, a two-time gold medalist in halfpipe, is expected to also challenge for the inaugural men’s snowboard slopestyle competition in Sochi.

“Involving freeskiing in the Olympics will bring a younger, fresher, edgier feel to the Olympics, similar to how snowboarding halfpipe did,” pipe and slopestyle skier Gus Kenworthy told ESPN.com. “I'm eagerly awaiting the 2014 Games and can't wait to see what the incorporation of freeskiing will do both for the Olympics and for our sport.”

In 2011, the International Olympic Committee announced it was adding ski halfpipe to the list of official events (slopestyle was added later). Halfpipe athletes are awarded points for clean runs showcasing amplitude and trick difficulty along 20-foot-high walls; slopestyle judges also score on the cleanliness of runs but athletes must navigate a downhill course highlighted by metal boxes and rails and large jumps. Both events are marquee events at Winter X Games, but it’s unclear how either will be received this month.

Bob Costas, the voice of NBC Sports’ Olympics coverage, compared slopestyle to the MTV show "Jackass." Bowman, however, thinks viewers will accept both events, partly because of their aerials and tricks, but also because of athletes.

“Since we’re so separate from the original Olympic sports and the ones that have been around a while, it does (feel like we’re outliers). But I think once everyone watches us and what we’re about, they will be sold. I think they will love it. We’re all competitive people. But honestly, we’re not competitive towards each other like you see in other sports. We are more competitive against ourselves, to do our best run as oppose to beating each other. That is something that is really unique to our sport, and specifically girls’ halfpipe. And it’s not a fake friendly, we are all real friends.”

February 18, 2014

The first time I visited New York, I was a high school freshman traveling with my parents. I had day-dreamed about going to the city, falling in love with the hustle of millions of different people; the visions included me living in the middle of it. Granted, those visions weren't specific to what type of work I would be doing or exactly where I would live, but I can assure you, it was fantastic and high heels were involved.

My dad grew up in New Jersey and my mom had lived and breathed musical theater her whole life, so when we decided to take that first trip to New York we created a specific agenda: the New York Yankees and Broadway shows.

We successfully accomplished our list and more. We had dinners at late hours of the night, took pictures with George Clooney at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, and took the ferry to Ellis Island. And the Yankees beat the Red Sox.

This little family outing turned into a tradition every Memorial Day weekend. One trip, we saw a taping of Late Night with Conan O'Brien (Cynthia Nixon was one of the guests!), and on another trip we took a tour of CNN. And we always took in as many Broadway shows as possible.

So when the opportunity to travel to New York for UNP came about, I said, “Yes, of course I will go!” And then I found out I would be going alone. I was still excited, but with a thousand jolts of nervous energy. Not only would I be meeting with the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, but I was going to pitch our whole forthcoming season of books! Could I find my way around the city by myself and be prepared for publicity meetings?

Of course I could. It would be a ton of work and preparation but I had been to New York before. Sure, the trip would be different than my family adventures, but it was still New York.

My first trip had a lot of firsts: traveling to the East coast, seeing a Broadway show, cheering on the Yankees, riding the subway, and eating ridiculously tall pieces of cheesecake. But my second trip had just as many firsts: traveling for work, pitching a multitude of books to national media, going out for dinner solo, occasionally getting lost on Fifth Avenue...

Since my second first time, I have been to New York for a few more publicity meetings and every time it's the same city, filled with even more opportunities for first experiences. But the latest first occurred outside of NYC. This past December, UNP added Washington, D.C., media to the list. Pitching UNP titles to the Beltway media? Another first. And yet, by now, those nerves have all gone and I can’t wait to visit another new city.

Maybe I could convince my manager that UNP needed to meet with the media in England.

February 14, 2014

For Valentine’s Day 1986, Ted Kooser wrote “Pocket Poem” and sent the tender, thoughtful composition to fifty women friends, starting an annual tradition that would persist for the next twenty-one years. Printed on postcards, the poems were mailed to a list of recipients that eventually grew to more than 2,500 women all over the United States. Valentines collects Kooser’s twenty-two years of Valentine’s Day poems, complemented with illustrations by Robert Hanna.

Kooser’s valentine poems encompass all the facets of the holiday: the traditional hearts and candy, the brilliance and purity of love, the quiet beauty of friendship, and the bittersweetness of longing. Some of the poems use the word valentine, others do not, but there is never any doubt as to the purpose of Kooser’s creations. Read an excerpt here.

“Over 22 years, Kooser has discovered a startling variety of ways to invert and enliven the vocabulary of romance, finding tender implications in even the mustiest Valentine’s symbols. . . . When it comes to his beloved(s), Kooser has generous eyes, offering always to keep her young. . . . Kooser’s poems do build a frisson, making the most of small moments of intimacy.”—Emily Nussbaum, New York Times Book Review

“The writing in this book is classic Kooser: simple images, down-to-earth language, insight, and uncommonly good sense, all of which combine to produce memorable, resonant endings. . . . The artwork, like the verse, is inviting, warm, and unpretentious.”—Elizabeth Lund, Christian Science Monitor

“Because Kooser is a master of such unpretentious scene-painting, these are poems of rich, Wordsworthian common feeling. . . . They’ve nearly all appeared in Kooser’s previous collections, but especially as accompanied by Robert Hanna’s drawings . . . they’ve never seemed more like godsends—or valentines!”—Booklist

“Each poem is a unique snapshot of love. The poet says it best himself: ‘all my life, I have wanted nothing so much as the love of women.’”—Publishers Weekly

“Forget about any Valentine you’ve seen in a grocery store aisle. These poems—touching, funny, ironic, and with the startling and always-fresh use of metaphor for which Kooser is known—are something else entirely.”— Nebraska Life

February 05, 2014

I’m old. I’ve hit the point in my life that when I hear of someone passing who made an impression on me, I stop and think about the first time I saw or heard them. I know this is a little morbid, but I regularly check the obituaries just to see if someone I know has died.

Pete Seeger passed away on January 27, 2014. I remember seeing him on an American Masters episode on PBS, singing “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” I really like folk music and he was one of the greats.

As part of my responsibilities at the Press, I had the chance to work with Pete to reprint the book Hard Hitting Songs for Hard-Hit People, compiled by Alan Lomax. Pete called me on the phone a few times to say that he was proud of the book and felt it was as relevant today as when it first appeared in 1967 and anything he could do to get the book back in print was well worth the effort. Who am I to argue with Pete Seeger, a fixture of the music scene since the 1940s? I did a little research, checked on the book that UNP had originally reprinted several years ago, and agreed to reprint this wonderful book. We wanted Pete to add a little more to the book and he sent along the following: “When Alan Lomax in May 1940 handed Woody and me a big pile of records and union song sheets, and said ‘Why don’t you two make a book out of this?’ we hoped we’d get a book of songs that hardworking folks and their families would like to sing.” He signed the note “Old” Pete Seeger and drew an image of his signature longneck banjo. Is that cool or what? That book, which is selling well, is one project that will always hold a special place.

One last thing: once the book was published, I spoke with Pete one last time. “Tom,” he said, “we’ve done a good thing.”